What Orthodox Christians do about the earthquake in Port au Prince

This was the Presidential Palace before yesterday. 

Now ...

  

What should Orthodox Christians do about the earthquake in Port au Prince?

Pray for mercy, repeatedly, profligately. Do not wait for detailed information to give to the Lord, as He knows it already. Do not wonder whether one should pray for non-Christians or non-Orthodox. Do not try to figure out how your prayers may make a difference. Now is not a good time to be deterministic or gnostic.

Give. Repeatedly. Profligately. Give through the IOCC, through the American Red Cross, through the MCC, Friends Disaster Service, World Vision. Do not wait for detailed information. Do not wonder whether one should give to secular or Christian or Orthodox organizations. Do not try to figure out how your gifts will make a difference. Now is not a good time to be an accountant.

Do not be philosophical and think decrepit thoughts like Voltaire upon Lisbon. 

Wondering why an earthquake happened is a waste of time. For Christians it could be worse, as it takes away time from prayer.

Haiti is a sad land to begin with, with a tragic history of slavery, voodoo, poverty and deforestation. My brother and a number of friends have spent much time there in mission centers, and I always heard from them that the desperation and the need never go away. Ben told me that people in the market place in Port au Prince would get large SUV-sized crates stuffed with rejected clothing from Goodwill: once in a while, packed inside, there would be a prized toaster or radio, just needing a small repair.

And that state of affairs was before the earthquake.

The poor get poorer ... except for when the poor are blessed, in a higher state of affairs.

And that is what Orthodox Christians do.

Comments

[David Dutko]

Thank you. I took the liberty of posting this, with credit and a link, on my Facebook page, Orthodox Christianity.net and the Byzantine Forum. Pat Robertson's comments about blood guilt and the devil and Napoleon boiled my blood. Your words brought me peace and comfort. Thank you.

[Kristina K.]

And this is what Orthodox Christians can do for the Orthodox Church of Uganda ... I mean, they are OUR people ...

http://genocide.change.org/actions/view/tell_the_orthodox_primates_everywhere_that_the_orthodox_church_of_uganda_cannot_sanction_genocide

[deb]

Thank you for this. I heard some of Pat Robertson's comments on the radio just a little while ago, and I just fumed. That man so seriously needs to shut the hell up. I guess that's not likely to happen, though, so thank God for voices like yours.

[Steve Hayes]

Do you have any news of the Orthodox Church in Haiti since the death of Fr Michael Graves?

Has anyone continued his work there?

[Fr. Jonathan]

Steve, I was wondering the same thing.

I remember that Fr. Graves had a school of perhaps 600 called "St. George's," I think, in Petionville (I could be wrong).

I, too, would welcome any information about Orthodoxy in Haiti.

[Stephen]

I just noticed that the ROCOR relief fund has a notice up about their mission in Haiti, basically saying that they can't get any information. That's at: http://www.fundforassistance.org/ffa_site/eng/haiti_earthquake.html

In terms of other information about ROCOR's mission, there is:
http://www.russianorthodoxchurch.ws/synod/engdocuments/enart_mhhaitiinterview.html

http://www.synod.com/synod/engdocuments/enart_frgregoirelegouteinterview.html

[Andrea]

Father Mike cared so very much about the Church and the people, and he sacrificed and worked incredibly hard. Unfortunately ...

http://www.roacamerica.org/art-text_timeline.shtml

•October/November 2004 The family of Fr. Michael Graves of ROAC-Haiti releases news of his sudden and unexpected death, his body having been found the previous week in his bathroom after parishioners' noticed his several days' absence from the mission-school. The parish and the family are justifiably upset because all ROAC-Valentine bishops and clergy refuse to travel to Haiti to bury their priest as required by Church tradition and ritual, but instead demand the immediate sale of the departed clergyman's vestments and ecclesiastical goods, with the proceeds to go to themselves. The parish being left penniless, despite Metropolitan Valentine's guarantees of generous financial support, and with only the leadership of Fr. Michael's 188 recently converted, unbaptized Haitians, they decide to leave ROAC and return to the wealthy but heretical Greek Archdiocese of Central America and its S.C.O.B.A. funds. This marks the beginning of a series of events leading to the dissolution of ROAC-Valentine or AROC in this hemisphere.

[Andrea]

Note: I understand that the work Father Mike accomplished fell to the wayside after his death. However, I do not know the accuracy of the rest of the article (i.e. whether the accusations are correct).